Chicagoland book club: Here's to Books

April 30, 2010

One thing to know about our book group: "Here's to Books" was inspired by Oprah Winfrey 14 years ago and includes half of the original members. We range in age from 32 to 78 and include educators and health professionals. Authors we'd most like to meet: Greg Mortenson, J.K. Rowling and Willa Cather. Worst excuse anyone's given for not reading an assigned book: The book is too long. Average time we spend talking about a book before conversation swerves off into politics and family issues: We spend about 45 minutes to an hour talking about the book before we share our personal lives. What books are next: “Fugitive Days: A Memoir" by Bill Ayers and “Snow Flower and the Secret Fan” by Lisa See.

Five books we loved: "Stones From the River" by Ursula Hegi, "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, “Olive Kitteridge” by Elizabeth Strout, “The Devil in the White City” by Erik Larson and “Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace … One School at a Time” by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin.